Sources from Chennai have told that with the Governor announcing that Amma brand of products and services will continue, Greater Chennai Corporation will have to reinvent itself to find the finances to manage the populist schemes and a significant contributor to the building of Brand Amma, the Corporation may find its high debt burden to be a deterrent for expansion of the schemes.
Officials have stated that while work on some of the most populist schemes like Amma canteens have gained momentum after the AIADMK government led by Chief Minister Jayalalitha has returned to power for a second successive term, the expansion plans have hit a roadblock owing to fund crunch.
A senior official has told that the Budget 2016-17 estimated that the Corporation would have to borrow loans to the tune of Rs. 1,400 crore for various development projects and the property tax rates remain unchanged and the estimated tax collection is about Rs.650 crore this year.
The officials have also added that the latest in the line of populist schemes is the AMMAA markets in the city and it is coming up in just one location and the original proposal was to cover 15 locations in the city.
